Errol Morris and Adam Curtis on Conspiracy Theories, etc.

Errol Morris and Adam Curtis on Conspiracy Theories, etc.

For fans of documentary filmmakers Errol Morris (Fog of War) and Adam Curtis (The Power of Nightmares), there is an indispensable dialogue in the April Issue of The Believer between the two noted expressionistic nonfiction essayists. Unfortunately, you have to buy the hard copy to read the entire interview, but here’s one fruitful exchange available online:

ERROL MORRIS: There are those that believe that [the Gulf of Tonkin incident was] part of a conspiracy to escalate the Vietnam War. Here’s a question: are they right? And, in an even more general sense, is history primarily a history of conspiracy? Or is it just a series of blunders, one after the other? Confusions, self-deceptions, idiocies of one kind or another?

ADAM CURTIS: It’s the latter. Where people do set out to have conspiracies, they don’t ever end up like they’re supposed to. History is a series of unintended consequences resulting from confused actions, some of which are committed by people who may think they’re taking part in a conspiracy, but it never works out the way they intended.

For more Morris, check out his endlessly entertaining website, which includes all manner of Morrisphernalia, aborted projects, scrapped commercials, interviews, etc. But no word on either of the filmmaker’s latest work. Anyone know what they’re up to these days?